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You have to understand that my friend is a comedian, so
the conversation had to meet his standards.I played into the flattery and continued jesting.

“If
you feel you must.I guess the news will
be out soon anyway. LOL I’m rather
famous … famous for getting in trouble with him (hubby).”

Miss you "Chick"

From there I paraded a list of people that have crossed
my path during my life, finishing with having a short street named after me
that’s about the length of a driveway.

“Beats
anything I got. LOL the cashier at the grocery store once let me in the express
lane when I was 3 items over the limit.That’s about it for my exciting experiences.” Bob
went on to share.

On and on we went until somehow it progressed into
sharing the famous people we met and a few minutes later I finished the
conversation.

“I’m
piggy backing on my family (meaning the list of celebs they know). My only fame
is having lunch with a bunch of teacher’s at the governor’s and throwing out
the ball at the Phillies stadium.Davy
Jones was in a play at my college and he did hug me.Hey, this one is mine, I taught former US Surgeon
General C. Everett Koop’s grandson Charlie.”

It wasn’t until later that night I thought about our
exchange and it brought me back to something that happened in my beginning
years of teaching.It was something a
student said to me that changed my life.

The
Pudding Episode

Lunch period was over and the students were making their
way back to the classrooms on the second floor of the building.Passing by my door two ninth graders from my Civics
class came in to visit. I was sitting at my desk eating one of those snack
puddings.

“Can
I have some?” Shelley asked.I handed her the container and scooping a bit
she took a bite then handed it back to me.

“You
can have it.” I said.That’s when Rae chimed in, “You
don’t want to eat it because she ate off it.”She went on and on not letting the subject drop.

Even though I explained to her that I really didn’t want
any more and was full, she didn’t believe me.I don’t think Shelley cared at all, because she finished the chocolate
pudding.

That conversation has been in my spirit ever since. Not
because of her comment about me not eating off Shelley, but that it might be
the only thing she remembered about me.I can’t tell you how much that bothered me.In reality, I didn’t want my legacy to become
history, but instead my history to become a legacy.

I can prove my point. Take a minute and think about your
teachers.Note that these are the people
who shape lives and mold individuals to be what they are meant to be.

What one thing really sticks out in your thoughts about
them?Can you even remember their names?There are probably a few of you who can, but
for the most part unless that teacher is amazing you won’t remember them.Their legacy was short lived in your life.

I think about the thousands of kids I’ve taught and have
heard through the grapevine of their raving over other teachers they thought
were their mentors.Was my name ever
mentioned?

With every child I encountered I was writing my story and
it was like a play list of what each student would remember about me.I didn’t want my “fifteen minutes of fame"
as a teacher in Shelley’s life to go down as “the pudding lady episode.”

The
One Thing

Over the years that followed that incident it has always
been in the forefront of my thoughts whenever I meet people. What will I
remember about this person?Even more daunting,
what will they remember about me?

There’s a lady that was very much a part of my past, but
now all I can remember learning from her is that she washes her hair brush every
time she showers.Since the time she
shared that tidbit I’ve done the same thing.

A man I’ve known all his life showed me how to remove a
label off a bottle by peeling it slowly. I think of that person every time I take off a label, but I
couldn’t tell you anything else he said or taught me that stuck.How sad is that?

What is the one thing that people will remember about
you?Will it be something silly or is
your story one that will live on beyond you?

Gone
Fishing

The conversation with Bob prayed on my mind, so I went
fishing for answers. I began asking people to tell me what they thought when
they heard my name.This time it had
nothing to do with flattery or fame.

The answers returned in two ways:they shared a
characteristic or my occupation.All the
answers were nice; maybe the bait was too sweet in the process of my seeking.

The one thing I wanted to hear didn’t pass my ears. No
one said anything about me being a Christian.They were “Christ like” characteristics, but not that I was Christ’s. What
story have I been invisibly writing about myself that others are visibly reading?

What’s the first thing or word that comes to your mind when
I say these names?Michael Tait …
Michael Jordan … Michael Jones (OK, I don’t know one either but there are over
50 on the web.) Michael Drosnin … Michael Douglas.

All these men are in different walks of life, but I can
almost guarantee the first thing that came to your thinking is their careers,
not who they are really but what they do/did in life.

It doesn’t matter how famous they are, because their
gifts came from God.What does matter is
the gift they gave to God in living for His glory.Their stories are great, but will be short
lived if not written on the heart of God.

Who Took
the Bait?

When I started writing this lesson I remembered a conversation
Jesus had with the apostle Peter.

It was after the disciples had been in town amongst a
crowd of unbelievers when Jesus posed this question to them. He asked, “Who do they say I Am?”

A simple question, nothing too deep for thought right? Let’s
read the rest of the dialog between the men.

“When Jesus came into the region of Caesarea Philippi, He asked His
disciples, (He was doing a little fishing of His own) saying, “Who do men
say that I, the Son of Man, Am?”

They got hooked when they didn’t notice Jesus paused
between saying “I” and the word “Am”.He was
giving them a clue …

I can picture this. Several of the boys answered.So they said, “Some say John the Baptist, some Elijah, and
others Jeremiah or one of the prophets.”

Jesus wasn't looking for those answers, so He put out more bait to get them off the hook.

“He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?”

Seems they got tangled on the line when the Lord was trying
to reel in an answer. Only one swallowed the bait, but he wasn’t hurt by the Fisherman
when he responded. As a matter of fact,
it was quite the opposite.

“Simon Peter answered and said, “You are the Christ, the Son of the
Living God.”

The Lord was pleased with the answer, because it proved
something had been written on Peter’s heart identifying him with Christ.

Jesus answered and said to him (Peter), “Blessed are you,
Simon Bar-Jonah, for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but My
Father who is in Heaven.”

This is the part that changed Peter’s life story.“And I also say to you that you are Peter, and on this rock I
will build My church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it.And I will give you the keys of the Kingdom of
Heaven, and whatever you bind on earth will be bound in Heaven, and whatever
you loose on earth will be loosed in Heaven.”(Matthew 16:13-19 NKJV)

Who
Will They Say You Are?

God can give you a new story for your journey, a
fantastic one, if you are open to the writing He wants to do on your heart.
When we accept God’s Son Jesus, He has things He wants to accomplish through us
just like He did Peter.

Your story isn't over. It's being re-WRITTEN.

Wouldn’t you love it if Jesus wanted to establish
something as grand as a nation, using you as the catalyst like He did
Peter when the church was born?

The story of our life should be the one that God has put
in your heart for His plan.He needs to be the author.

When Peter agreed to living his life for Jesus, God made
His mark on Peter’s heart that identified him as a child of the King.How important was that decision?Well let’s see. You won’t read about a
pudding lady, a famous athlete, singer or anyone else like that in the Bible.

Peter’s story doesn’t remind us that he was “just” a
disciple, but that he was the one and
only person God the Father revealed Jesus as “the Christ and Son of God” to before
He went to the cross.

Jesus called Peter
“blessed”.In other words, "Peter, God favored you… because He has your
heart!”

Making the decision to follow Christ doesn’t mean you
have lost your dreams and desires. God is the one who put them there in the
first place.When we give our life to
the Lord it is no longer ours, but no worries … He has blessings and favor
lined up for us.Even though we don’t
know the whole plan along our journey, we can be sure that it is good.

“For I (God) know the plans I have for you,” says the LORD. “They
are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope.”
(Jeremiah 29:11 NLT)

The question I want to ask is, “Do you believe in Jesus
enough for your story to turn out good like He promised?”In other words, “Do you trust in God enough
for Him to do what He wants to through you like He did Peter?”

This
Week’s Challenge:

Writing A New Story

You won’t make any changes in your life if you don’t come
to realize what your story really is.How will we know what story we’re writing?Go fishing for answers yourself.

Our challenge is to ask at least ten people, in different circles we know, this question: “When
you hear my name what is the first thing that comes to your mind?” Write down their answers.If they list your qualities, occupation or
characteristics instead of recognizing that you are a child of God, you know
your story – it’s the wrong one. Time for a re-write.

After you have your answers ask a second question, but
this one is to God.

“Lord,
what is the story you want me to tell about you?Write your story on my heart so I can share
that message with others.”

Any fame we gain here on Earth will all be lost one day. Who’s
going to remember the famous “pudding lady” anyway?Maybe Rae, Shelley or even Bob.I want a real legacy don’t you? We can re-write our story.

When everything else slips away, will you be able to say,
“God, I let You write Your story through
me.”Give God permission to write
His story on your heart and your story will live forever in His.